Yankees GM Brian Cashman did not speak kindly of the past collective bargaining agreements, George A. King III of the New York Post reports. Cashman said, “It’s already crippled us in the short term. Exhibit A is our free agency last year and a lot of the international markets I’ve been taken out of.”
Cashman is referring to the fact that the Yankees did not sign a single free agent last offseason, ostensibly because of the draft pick compensation rules. He also referenced international spending penalties placed on his team the past two seasons after signing shortstop Dermis Garcia, third baseman Nelson Gomez, outfielder Juan DeLeon, outfielder Jonathan Amundaray, and outfielder Antonio Arias in 2014. The current CBA expires on December 1. The owners and players are currently negotiating. It is believed that the draft pick compensation system will be scrapped in favor of something less penalizing.
Cashman continued, saying, “The previous CBAs have really hindered us, so I think the next one is something we’re clearly going to be interested in on how it will impact us over the entire course of the term of the contract. The previous ones have impacted us in a bad way.”